In March 1903 the old (Tenterden) terminus was renamed Rolvenden and the railway was extended 1.5 miles to the present Tenterden Town station. Rother Valley Railway (RVR) says it is delighted that its application for restoration of the Northbridge Street to Junction Road section of the Robertsbridge to Bodiam Reconnection Project has been approved by Rother District Council (RDC). One embankment is still visible but is covered by mature oak and other trees. The reason for this refusal was the Ministry plan to build a by-pass to take the A21 around Robertsbridge. Tenterden had yearned for a railway connection for many years but finally received a connection in 1900.The origins of the line seem, in fact, to lie elsewhere than Tenterden. There has been some resistance from two landowners with regard to the proposed reinstatement, while the third missing section of route adjoining Junction Road has now been acquired by RVR Ltd and made ready for tracklaying. A charity, supported by a society of volunteers, is attempting to re-establish the railway link. A 14-year-old autistic boy's naive prank. A mile of new track has already been laid to the west of Bodiam station, to the site of the former Junction Road Halt. Plans to connect Tenterdens Kent & East Sussex Railway with the London-Hastings main line have finally been approved. [12], Upon nationalisation, one of the surviving two locomotives and all but the newest rolling stock were scrapped. Purchased secondhand in 1932. Southern Railway No. The preservationists wanted to reopen the line through to Robertsbridge, but were refused permission by the then Transport Minister Barbara Castle to take over the section between Bodiam and Robertsbridge, despite taking the Minister to the High Court. When complete the line will be operated by KESR using its staff, rolling stock, and procedures. Some remaining farmland on the original trackbed has yet to be purchased. Er zijn genoeg bezienswaardigheden om te bezoeken rond Salehurst and Robertsbridge. May have been a brake vehicle. The Kent and East Sussex Railway is a winding rural steam and diesel light railway that runs for 10 miles on a preserved rail route through the Kent countryside. By June 2012, this further extension was also completed. Conceived as the Rother Valley Railway, it opened from Robertsbridge to Rolvenden station (then named Tenterden) in 1900 and subsequently on to Tenterden Town in 1903. kent and east sussex railway extension to robertsbridge. Converted c1909 to a five compartment brake third. Purchased new in 1904, seated 46. The K&ESR owned a number of non-rail vehicles, one of which survives today. It also has links to multi-millionaire hedge fund manager Jeremy Hosking, 59, who owns a number of steam locomotives including the Royal Scot. This inquiry was scheduled to begin on 26 May 2020, was deferred, and eventually began in July 2021. K&ESR locomotives have made visits to the CFBS. The end was in sight and traffic decline was now steep. Passenger traffic and the operation of the Headcorn extension ceased in 1953 and the railway closed completely in 1961. Built by the London and South Western Railway in 1892 as a 45 feet (13.72m)} tri-composite numbered 486. converted in 1909 to a brake composite. [4] Stephens attained the rank of lieutenant colonel in the Territorial Army (TA) in 1916 and was subsequently known as Colonel Stephens. Headcorn was remodelled by the Southern Railway in 1930 to provide two through roads and the junction was then moved to the Tonbridge side of the station. Number 107 in the K&ESR stocklist. A: Woolwich Arsenal Railway: 3-plank dropside open Obtained from the Woolwich Arsenal Railway in 1964. An application has been made for a Transport and Works Act order which would give statutory powers to rebuild and operate the line. Acquired in 1947. However, in 2011 this plan was dropped in favour of moving directly to a final layout suitable to handle the eventual traffic to and from Tenterden, with no interim railway operations. It's GRAYGATE! Last edited on 21 February 2023, at 15:49, Learn how and when to remove this template message, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rother_Valley_Railway&oldid=1140748000, From 1988 until the early 1990s, another "Rother Valley Railway" had a brief existence on the site of, This page was last edited on 21 February 2023, at 15:49. The latter section was lifted and became abandoned in the mid 1970s. ', Neighbouring 440-acre Parsonage Farm has been in Andrew Hoad's family since the 1880s. The Kent and East Sussex Railway is a preserved steam railway which makes for an excellent family day out. [8] The original junction at Headcorn was on the Ashford side of the station. They're spending a lot of money at the Robertsbridge end, renewing bridges, building a station and other buildings. In 1904, the Rother Valley Railway changed its name to the Kent & East Sussex Light Railway. 32655 was replaced by O1 31065 and 32678 banked the train to St Michael's. These locomotives worked on the line between 1948 and 1961. A separate Company, the Rother Valley Railway (East Sussex) Ltd, was formed on 22 May 1991 with the approval of the Tenterden Railway Company to reconstruct the railway between Bodiam and Robertsbridge and has since simplified its name to Rother Valley Railway Ltd. The RVR began by reinstating the first few hundred yards of line eastwards from Robertsbridge, and also a short stretch westwards from Bodiam. The South Eastern Railway opened its line from Ashford to Hastings on 13 February 1851. Planning permission was secured for its scheme at Robertsbridge, and the whole route is safeguarded in the Council's local plan. A separate railway preservation effort, the Rother Valley Railway, is restoring track at the western end between Robertsbridge Junction and Bodiam. Once that is achieved money is in place to start the work and if everything progresses to plan the entire 14-mile route from Tenterden to Robertsbridge could be up and running in two years time. The proposed Order is applied for by Rother Valley Railway Limited (RVR), working in partnership with the Kent and East Sussex Railway (K&ESR) which operates an existing heritage railway between Tenterden and Bodiam. However the world was in rapid change as ex-army motor lorries and buses flooded the transport market. The main reasons for a separate organisation were to allow K&ESR to remain focussed on its existing activities, to avoid placing that activity at any financial risk, and to enable the new project to proceed with its own dedicated management team. A wind pump was provided just outside Headcorn Junction to supply water for the locomotives. In 1904, the Headcorn and Maidstone Junction Light Railway was authorised. [7] The original Tenterden station was renamed Rolvenden on this date. . In 1957, Drewry diesel locomotive 11220 was successfully trialled on the line, and it and 11223 were the regular locomotives for the final years of operation. Built by the London and South Western Railway in 1892 as No. The Rother Valley Railway's awaiting trains from Tenterden. Hastings line to a temporary terminus, later named Rolvenden, near Tenterden. 2021530 . The impetus seems to have come from landowners and businesses in Northiam and Bodiam in late 1894. "These are to better understand what effect a level crossing, which would only operate during off-peak hours, would have on the A21.". Ten years later it might be a very different story but before the Great War the K&ESR was seen as a progressive, and indeed model, light railway that served its community with distinction. Purchased secondhand in 1909. There will be an end-on link with the Kent and East Sussex at Bodiam enabling through running. Credit: Richard Crease/Alamy Live News. On12th March 1903 a contract to build the Headcorn and upgrade the Rother Valley line was signed, a wise upgrade to meet a successful increase in traffic. Trying to find the right nursery, school, college, university or training provider in Kent or Medway? Purchased secondhand in 1906. They are trying to prevent a heritage railway line being extended by two miles from Bodiam to Robertsbridge amid accusations of bullying and environmental vandalism. The railway emphasises the Colonel Stephens connection as a major factor of its utilitarian heritage. By the 1930s it had lost much of the traffic it had been built to carry. Seleziona un'opzione qui sotto per avere indicazioni dettagliate e confrontare i prezzi del biglietto e i tempi di viaggio nel pianificatore di viaggio di Rome2rio. The East Sussex Light Railway was authorised in 1901. The extension to Tenterden Town opened on 15 April 1903. [11] The whole line was relaid with 60 pounds per yard (29.8kg/m) rails in 1939. Three compartments plus brake. The use of compulsory purchase orders on farmland needed for the new track has even been branded The Great Robertsbridge Train Robbery by campaigners. The Kent & East Sussex Railway are proud to be the home for two of these historic locomotives; Bodiam, was . Rother District Council granted planning permission last year. They say it could put Robertsbridge, which dates to 1176 when a Cistercian abbey was founded, back on the map. Many representations for and against the scheme were submitted, and in June the Secretary of State for Transport announced that a public local inquiry would be held. In 2018, the RVR applied for a Transport and Works Act order which, if approved, would give the statutory powers to complete the reinstatement of the line and operate it. The railway was authorised by its own Act of Parliament in 1896, but with the passing later that year of the Light Railways Act, the directors obtained permission to bring the RVR under that Act for construction and operating purposes. 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The line continued to be run as two sections. 962, a 42 feet (12.80m) long seven compartment third. The line runs through a lightly populated area and was never well . The Kent and East Sussex Railway refers to both a historical private railway company in Kent and East Sussex in England, as well as a heritage railway currently running on part of the route of the historical company. 1325 was loaned in 1946 and No. RVR has met with the three landowners and will continue to engage with them with a view to acquiring the original track bed by agreement.. Became British Railways property on nationalisation. But the project has found support among Tenterden residents because of its potential to bring in visitors from London and boost tourism. The proposal to build this road was the major reason preventing the acquisition from British Railways of this section of the railway by the Tenterden Railway Company in the 1960s, and the railway land was subsequently sold off to local farmers. Built by the London and South Western Railway Ex Southern Railway No. A proposal to double the line wasn't carried out, but the track was again relaid to a higher standard, using rails salvaged from the Elham Valley Railway. Four third-class four-wheel carriages were purchased new in 1901 for the opening of the line. Heady ideas of commanding enough finance to build lines to Rye, Cranbrook and Pevensey, all authorised over 1898-1900, together with Maidstone in 1905-06, faded. It was released from government control in 1921, and 1,487 in compensation was paid. Simultaneously the South Eastern & Chatham (SE&CR), decided to rid itself of an obligation to build its long envisaged line to Tenterden. Scrapped in 1948. WordPress Designers and Developers in Kent. While the RVR does not yet feature regular passenger trains, the base at Robertsbridge houses a small shop and visitor centre open to the public each Sunday, utilising a building formerly used as the London terminus of the Orient Express. Construction work commenced in 1898 but there were delays with contractors' bankruptcy and it was not until 9th January 1900 that the line was reported complete. The final working was the 7.55 am working from Robertsbridge on Saturday 10th June 1961 followed the next day by a rail tour. In 2010, the latter section was further extended to reach Junction Road. Scrapped in 1948. Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group, Charles 'will NEVER build real relationship with Archie and Lili unless Harry and Meghan get new royal home': Sussexes 'to get Andrew's Buckingham Palace apartment' after Frogmore eviction made it 'incredibly complicated for family to visit again', 'Petrified' autistic boy, 14, at centre of 'scuffed Quran' row is forced to flee his home by arson threat - as scandal that speaks volumes about modern British policing continues to cause uproar, When will the Beast from the East be at YOUR door? Not so shipshape! The railway runs between Tenterden Town and Bodiam. Kent and East Sussex Railway: 12-ton flat Built in 1926 by the London, Midland and Scottish Railway at Newtonheath as a Banana Van. Supporters include Tom Lewis, the owner of Morghew Park Estate in Smallhythe Road, who described the heritage K&ESR line that already crosses his land as "a responsible and co-operative neighbour". What's for dinner? RVR spokesman Mark Yonge said: This is a real red letter day and we are extremely pleased permission has now been granted. A previous attempt by rail preservationists to take over the missing Bodiam to Robertsbridge section was quashed in 1973. It takes its name from the original name for what later became the Kent and East Sussex Railway, running from Robertsbridge through to Headcorn in Kent, via Tenterden. Purchased secondhand by 1906. The line opened to Goudhurst in 1892 and Hawkhurst in 1893. This branch line closed to passenger traffic in 1954. The railway line from Rolvenden to Robertsbridge was opened in 1900. Double-heading was prohibited between Rolvenden and Robertsbridge.[13]. Extensions followed, notably to Wittersham Road in 1977 and Northiam in 1990; then to Bodiam in 2000, and an extra one mile (1.6km) extension to the site of Junction Road halt in 2011. On 16 March 2017, Rother District Council granted planning permission for the reinstatement of the line between Northbridge Street and Junction Road. The vote is open until 20 March so please give him your support: Welcome to the Kent & East Sussex Railway. Published: 22:00, 11 May 2018 | Updated: 22:36, 11 May 2018. This was abandoned in 1899 as it was deemed too expensive to construct, and the South Eastern Railway again backed the Tenterden Railway, but no work was done and powers to construct the line lapsed in 1901.[4]. Acquired in 1936. Four cattle wagons were purchased in 1904, and another was purchased in 1928. A month passed before 32678 was recovered. Access to the current KESR is largely made by private car or coach, so the railway would help reduce traffic movements on local rural roads. Rother Valley Railway chairman Gardner Crawley said the railway had requested that the hearing be delayed so it could gather more information on its impact on traffic. Nos. Purchased secondhand in 1906. The two Terriers then ran back to Robertsbridge with a carriage between them to reduce the weight on the bridges.